


Fields of Lupine Flowers

by XrosaryX



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Ballerina Akira!!!, Ballet Terms, Big sister Akira to Futaba yes!, F/M, Female Akira, Female Persona 5 Protagonist, Gen, I'm shipping trash, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, Lots of pairings than those listed above, Multi, Other, Phantom Thieves for life!, There may be more ships, more tags later!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-15
Updated: 2018-07-09
Packaged: 2018-11-13 22:54:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11195166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/XrosaryX/pseuds/XrosaryX
Summary: Let us frolic through the fields hand in hand, may we stay connected even if the world sees us as villains. We give this world a hidden strength as we continue to go out in merriment together.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Lupine flowers were named after 'lupinus' which means 'wolves' since in ancient times they were mistaken for taking the nutrients from the soil. However the flowers were helping enrich the soil by adding nitrogen. The flowers also symbolize imagination and can also mean inner strength to recover from trauma.
> 
> Disclaimer time: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING PERTAINING TO THE PERSONA SERIES! IT BELONGS TO ATLUS!

When she comes to she’s so confused, distorted…

Her eyes squint about the room, trying to find something familiar through her blurred out vision. Had her eyes always been this bad? Where are her glasses?

There’s a sort of heaviness in her head…As if someone had taken a hammer and continued to just strike every inch of the inside of her skull.

She’s so tired…Dizzy…

Her whole body aches…

What happened?

She closes her eyes for a moment to try and remember…

Faint memories of bright lights and colors as well as the smell of metal and alcohol mixed in. She remembers hearing faint sounds similar to what you’d hear a slot machine make…

…A casino?

She tries to force herself to open her eyes to their fullest, but whines as she can feel the strain hurting her.

Her whole body hurts so much and she feels restrained by something. Something is around her wrists, but she can’t figure out what it is. She shakes her head again and forces herself to hang her head forward. She has to ignore the pain and push through the fog…She has to remember…

“Nice work as always, Joker.”

Voices…She can remember voices of people…She knows these are people she knew.

“Good. Now get running!” A young boyish voice manages to come through followed by voice of another male, “This is our only chance!”

“Stay calm! You can get away now!” A girl’s voice cuts in as if trying to soothe her as another one a little more mature sounding comes right after, “We’ll retrieve the briefcase on our end.”

The pounding gets worse and she wants to curl up and…

“Just run! Get out of there!”

A girl’s voice filled with urgency shoots through her head making her jolt up at attention, “Joker, behind you! Go through that door!”

Breathing becomes harder and she fidgets a bit to realize that she is sitting in a hard chair with her arms behind her back. She lets out a grunt as she tries to move herself and hisses as she feels a sharp pain run down her sides as she tugs a little too hard to get her arms to move.

“See ya.”

Her own voice echoes in her head, and she recalls something…

Her lips turning up into a smirk as she gazes across the room to three men in suits as her fingers rise up in a mock salute just before she dives right through a window. She remembers the sounds of the glass shattering upon impact and the wind whistling as she goes through the air. Her hair and the ends of her trench coat flutter about her like flags…

She can hear the same voice that had been filled with urgency suddenly change to one that scoffs, “Huh. What a show-off. You’re so reckless you know that?”

Oh god her throat hurts so much…

And her head….

She gently shakes her head and forces herself to swallow.

She remembers her back hitting the cold pavement as she landed down. She whines as she remembers voices chiming in suddenly once she hit the ground. Her own body growing heavy as she lets out a shaky gasp.

“Enemies here?!”

“What’s wrong?!”

“These readings…It can’t be!”

“What happened?!”

“An ambush?!”

“Joker! Can you handle this!”

“Joker!”

“Oh no!”

There's so many voices yelling at the same time that she barely has a moment to differentiate each voice. Her head is hurting more now and her eyelids can’t stay open anymore…She wants to just lay down.

She remembers hands grabbing at her hair roughly and bright lights shining in her face as she’s forced to look up at someone as their fingers grasp her thick curls tightly. There's a smirk on the man's face as he studies her before he speaks, “Didn’t expect to find some little girl…You have your teammate to thank for this. You were sold out bitch.”

The man drops her head immediately and she can remember the cold pavement rough against her temple as something in her chest grows heavy at his words.

“Suspect confirmed, cuff her.”

She’s having a hard time staying awake and she tries to keep the bits of what she remembered before the pounding in her head becomes too much. Somewhere she can hear a door open with its squeaky hinges, announcing she is no longer alone. A part of her is still grasping to keep those fleeting memories intact, she has to remember…

Her mouth drops open as her vision begins to fade to black.

There’s an odd sense of welcoming as she allows herself to fall into the darkness…

“Wake her up.”

Cold water is splashed right over her head making her jolt back into conscious and allowed a soft gasp come out of her mouth. She weakly lifts her head up and her eyes blink rapidly as the world becomes clear again.

“No dozing off here princess,” a voice mocks as she grits her teeth just as the voice’s owner comes into her view. Three men are in the room with her now all dressed in suits, but the one speaking is by far the bulkiest out of the three…And the one she wants to desperately wants to punch that smirk of his off his face. Despite her fading memory she knows this man is the main reason why her body hurts so bad…And his voice just makes her stomach clench in discomfort along with that sneer.

His lips twitch into a smirk as she glares up at him through her bangs, “Ah and the sleeping beauty awakens. Had a nice nap?” Her mouth opens, but no sound comes out as she feels her throat clench in pain. His smirk finally finds its way onto his face at her silence and she lets out a low growl.

She tries to raise her arms, god she wants to get a good punch right at his face!

Only to halt as cold metal digs into her wrists making her groan in frustration as she turns her head at an angle to spot the shine of the handcuffs on her wrist. She wiggles in her seat trying to break the handcuffs and grits her teeth as she feels it digging deeper at her skin. The man clicks his tongue and sighs, “You still don’t get it, do you?”

She’s taken off guard as his shoe makes contact to her stomach making her cry out as she topples down to the floor. Her body twitches on the impact and she can feel just how cold the floor is as she tries to get back up. She lets out a yell as the bottom of his shoe presses against her head, her eyes watering as he applies more pressure.

“Come on, cooperate you little bitch,” he hisses and grinds his heel right above her temple, “Or what, you want another shot?”

Shot?

Her eyes slowly begin to notice the scattered empty needles on the floor and she feels a faint pain in her neck. Well…That explained her grogginess and weak body…The bastards…

She grinds her teeth harder as the man keeps pushing his foot right over her temple before noticing a red light in the far off distance. Her stare doesn’t go unnoticed as the man looks in the direction, “Huh…What about the camera? You thinking it can be used as video evidence?”

His fingers grip through the locks of her hair and yank her up, “Well, speak up!”

She tries to move her head only to have his fingers grasp her hair tighter and she groans. Swallowing down what little saliva she has left she allows her voice to croak out an answer.

“…of course not…”

How stupid did they think she was? The treatment they were doing to her were far from what she could faintly recall humane. In fact, this was outright abusing whatever power they had with her restrained. The man stays silent before chucking, “Well aren’t you a smart one? Of course, there are no laws here that will protect criminals like you!”

Her head slams down to the floor and she lets out a wheeze as he kicks her in the stomach which leads to her body curling up as she coughs in pain. The light wheezing soon halts as she notices the clipboard in his hand, “Obstruction of justice, blackmail, defamation-“

Wait…What was he going on about?

“-possession of weapons…manslaughter too? Talk about the works right?”

She stares up at him in confusion and wonders if the drugs they had forced into her made her forget something. All those…Were those…

The man stares down at her before letting out a scoff, “To think,” he says as he slowly advances to her, “All those crimes were led by this slut right here…And it looked like you were enjoying every second of it huh.”

Enjoying it?

She lowers her head a bit and closes her eyes as she tries to recall anything…Everything is…Everything was still so hazy. She can barely recall what memory she managed to remember earlier before they splashed her with water...How could they expect her to remember more with her so disoriented from whatever they shot in her system?

“You should know your place…”

She stays still on the floor as she can hear his feet thud against the floor towards her, “Uncuff her.”

She grits her teeth as a hand roughly yanks her from the ground and the handcuffs on her wrists fall to the ground with a faint thud. There’s barely time for her to enjoy the feeling of her free wrists as her back is shoved to the wall making her fall back onto her ass. Shaking her head she tries to get up only to be pushed against the wall by her shoulder as the clipboard is shoved into her face. The man is looming over her with the clipboard shoved too close to her face...

“Sign it. It’s a confession under your name.”

She stares at the paper, her eyes squinting as she makes out the words before letting out a grunt and slaps the board away. The man stares at her in silence for a moment, his grin gone and she can feel her lips twitching a bit before he stands up to his full height.

“I see…I need your hand to sign this, but…”

She barely has time to brace herself as his shoe lands right on top her knee making her cry out in pain as the rest of the men chuckle at her reaction. The man only grinds his shoe harder much like he did to the side of her head before waving the board in her face, “I don’t care if you end up losing a leg. Get it sweetheart?”

It sickens her how he speaks to her like she’s some sort of pet, but the pain is too much to bear already and she weakly raises her hand up to accept the clipboard. Once her fingers grasp it he lets off the pressure on her leg and she immediately brings both her legs to her chest. The action seems to amuse him as he chuckles before grabbing her hair again making her yelp as she’s forced to stand up.

Her knees bend awkwardly as she tries to find strength to keep herself up without the support of his hand tugging her hair and presses herself against the wall as he leans in close to her face.

“Don’t expect to walk out of here in one piece,” he hisses as he takes out a silver pen and yanks her free hand up, “ “We are going to make you understand…One must take full responsibility for their actions little lady.” Her hair is released and she stumbles to keep herself up against the wall, only to collapse onto her knees in front of him.

She lets out a breathe before raising the clipboard up and gripping the pen a bit tighter as she finds the spot she has to sign.

A….K…I…R….A

K….U….R…U…S…U

She stares at her name.

Akira Kurusu….Dear Lord had she nearly forgotten her name?

Her head is hurting and she forces herself to raise her arm up to return the clipboard back to the man. She can feel all eyes on her as she continues to hold the board up, her arm shaking the longer she is forced to do so. The man from earlier chuckles before roughly yanking it out of her fingers, “Now was that so hard?”

She glares up at the man through her bangs as she watches him hand the clipboard to one of his associates before reaching down towards her.

No way was he touching her again…No.

Just as his fingers even come close to her hair she snaps her head up and bites down. The man lets out a scream as she forces herself to put as much pressure as she can until she feels a fist collide into her temple.

“THAT BITCH!”

Her lips form a smirk until she’s forced back down onto the floor.

Shit…She forgot about the others in the room with them!

The way he stares down at her is like a predator ready to rip his prey into shreds, “You think you’re so clever you little bitch? I think someone deserves another shot.” Her eyes widen as he pulls out a needle and she tries to wiggle free from the hands on her.

No….Nonononononono!

“Sir!”

“Shit, what?!” She freezes as the door opens to reveal another man, this one wearing a guard’s uniform, as he closes the door, “Um..There’s uh…Sae Niijima is here…Sir.”

“What?”

“She’s here to talk to the suspect….”

Niijima…?

The men grow quiet and the only sounds Akira can hear are her gasps as she remains on the floor, “…Get her up.” Akira is forced up onto her feet instantly, making her gag slightly as the sudden change of inertia gives her little time to adjust. One of the men quickly goes off to drag the chair she had once sat in towards a table in the far end of the room as another keeps a hold on her.

“…You got lucky,” the head of the group scoffs before shoving the needle back into his pocket, “But luck will run out for you.”

Akira opens her mouth, but coughs lightly instead as she is forced back into the chair. At least now she can rest her arms on the table…

The men all leave the room and she almost allows herself to lower her head to the table if not for the sudden appearance of a stranger entering the room. The woman's stiletto heels click lightly against the cemented floor before stopping at the the chair across from her. Akira weakly lifts her head up as the woman pulls the chair back and dropping her bag right beside her as she settles down.

She knows her…She knows she knows her she’s familiar…

The woman's long gray hair flows over her shoulders and she pushes a stray bang out of her face as she looks at Akira with a frown though it falls as her eyes study over her slumped form at the table. Those dark red brown eyes seem to have pity in them as the woman leans forward a bit before speaking up, “Kurusu-chan…Do you remember me?”

“…Niijima-san…?”

The woman, Sae Niijima, yes…She remembers her…

Sae breathes a sigh of relief as Akira manages to keep her head up enough and talk, “I…I honestly wasn’t expecting it to be you. You’ll be answering my questions this time…And I can assure you, I am not going to snoop so low as those bastards.”

The woman turns her head slightly and Akira wills herself to see what has the woman’s attention before spotting the empty needle still on the floor. Instinctively she rubs the side of her neck as Sae returns her attention back to her. Sae's gaze falls back to the floor as her mouth goes back to a frown which gives her a look of sympathy before leaning forward towards her, “You’ve been through a lot. Almost anything can happen here…And I can’t stop them.”

Akira bites her lower lip before closing her eyes and nods in agreement as the older woman exhales loudly, “That’s why I need you to answer me honestly. I don’t have much time either.”

She can feel her head throbbing again, but ignores it as Sae rattles down a list of questions for her. What was her objective and why cause a major incident, she knew why yet her head hurts too much to speak up…

“I didn’t think it was a prank from the get-go, but I couldn’t assemble a case for prosecution,” Sae adds before leaning back in her seat to cross her arms, “It’s because I couldn’t figure out the method behind it.”

“…of course you couldn’t.”

Her voice comes out so softly and meekly she isn’t sure if it even belongs to her, but Sae continues to speak, “True. There’s no way I could be convinced of such a…'world' just by reading the reports. It seems you’re coherent at least Kurusu-chan.”

Is she?

Her head hurts so bad…She weakly rests her forehead against the palms of her hands as Sae takes a moment to study her.

Who did Sae see in front of her?

A high school girl whose been roughed up so bad? Or something more than some high school student?

“When and where did you find out about that world?  How is it even possible to steal another’s heart?”

Sae’s questions make her stiffen, but it’s enough to get her to lift her head up again to look at the woman. Sae is still leaning forward towards her, the gentleness in her voice and face is gone as she continues to stare at Akira. This is a look of a woman on a mission for answers and Akira gazes back at her with a hardened look in her eyes as Sae speaks again, “Now tell me your account of everything. Start form the very beginning.”

At the corner of her eye she can see a blue butterfly flying past her and she closes her eyes as she lets out an exhale, "Right," her voice cracks as she rests her forehand against the palm of her hand, "At the beginning…."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The journey starts right at the beginning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What up everyone? Yup onward to chapter 2!
> 
> Disclaimer time: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING PERTAINING TO THE PERSONA SERIES! IT BELONGS TO ATLUS

_The world is not as it should be._

_It’s filled with distortion,_

_And “ruin” can no longer be avoided._

_Those who oppose fate and desire change…_

_From time to time, they were referred to as Tricksters._

_You are the Trickster…_

_Now is the time to rise against the abyss of distortion._

* * *

She opens her eyes as the back of her head hits the wall behind her, letting out a pained groan as her hands press against the spot. Akira grits her teeth and attempts to keep herself from yelling as she keeps rubbing against the bump she's sure that'll form.

“Ngh…”

Had she fallen asleep that easily? And what was that weird dream…Well it wasn’t necessarily a dream, but it was a voice echoing somewhere in the darkness. Maybe she was more tired than she had thought…

Her hands rest back on her lap as she regards the other passengers in the train car around her before glancing up a bit as she hears the recorded announcement, “Ladies and gentleman thank you for riding with us today. We will be arriving to Shibuya shortly…”

Akira allows herself to sink into her seat as she tunes out the rest of the woman’s words, already knowing she will get off soon. Her hands feel a bit sweaty and she forces herself to take a deep breath in to calm herself.

City…She’s in Tokyo right now…

Far away from the little town she grew up in…

**_“Damn brat…I’ll sue!”_ **

The echo of that man’s voice makes her flinch as the train makes a sharp turn and she lets out a loud exhale as she forces herself to stop thinking about it. Shivers run down her arms and she only clenches the fabric of her skirt as she looks ahead.

Everyone seems to be focused on their phones or are asleep, much like she had been earlier. The train car is at least quiet-

“-Are you for real? Mental shutdowns?”

“It’s the truth!”

Her head turns towards two girls wearing matching uniforms, not the same as the one she has, giggling not too far from her. “But to a person though? You must really love all that occult stuff don’t you?” Both girls giggle together as they continue their conversation to other.

For a brief moment Akira remembers two of her friends from her previous school in their place, her hands covering her mouth in hopes to silence the giggles her friends were trying to lure out of her. _“But not there anymore,”_ Akira reminds herself as the vision disappears in an instant, _“I’m by myself now. This isn’t home…Because of…”_

She sighs and braces herself in her seat as the train comes to a halt, “Please be sure to exit in-“

The teenage girl doesn’t waste a second before stepping off the train and into the crowd hurrying out once the doors open. Being inside had been nerve wrecking and nearly suffocating at the sheer amount of people around her. The city was definitely different from her old hometown, and she wasn’t even close to her destination. Her feet carry her along with the crowd out of the train station and into the open streets.

The sheer amount of buildings and people surprise her and she quickly ducks out of the way of the crowd to an empty spot by a building.

“I should double check my phone to see I’m going the right way,” Akira dug into her bag and pulled out her phone, “Last thing I need is to get lost.” Her fingers swipe at the screen and she presses her messages to review over the last text her father had sent her with the address.

She turns her head a bit and stares at her reflection. Her mother often considered her a very average young lady, and she might as well be.

She wasn’t too tall, but she wasn’t too short. She was blessed to be of average height and weight compared to any other high school girl.

Her thick black hair had been carefully parted and braided into two neat braids that rested over her shoulders. The black uniform blazer fit snug around her and she was slightly proud that she had some curves to her body despite not being super model like. Her biggest pride was probably her stormy gray eyes that peered through the lenses of her glasses. Her mother commented that her eyes weren’t a murky sort of gray and instead seemed to shine as bright as her name meant.

Shaking her head Akira went back to her phone before pressing a navigation app and typing in the address.

She slid back into the crowd and trained her eyes down to her phone’s screen, ignoring the rest of the world around her until she noticed she was approaching the scramble crossing.

Akira can only lift her head as she takes in the sight.

The amount of people all around makes her realize just how small she is…Or rather how lost she can be if she didn’t know where to go. The city was certainly….New.

A beep interrupts her thoughts and she glances down in surprise to see something that wasn’t there before. An icon with an eye in red and black appears right in the center of her map and she stares at it. To her surprise the icon suddenly grows larger until it takes up most of her phone’s screen and she blinks.

 _“What the heck…What’s this?”_ The nail of her index finger lightly taps it and she frowns when the screen remains frozen. This time she uses the pad of her finger against the screen and taps at it again only to receive the same result. _“Is this some sort of virus? Maybe…I can restart the phone.”_

Akira sighs and is about to turn the phone over in her hands when she notices something else out of place…It’s quiet. Instantly her head snaps up and she manages to catch sight of everyone around her slowing down and freezing in place. “H..Huh?”

Her voice echoes around the crossing and her head turns left to right until she has to physically turn her body in all directions to be certain. It’s like someone has hit pause and only she is left unaffected. “What’s going on? What’s-“

A quiet giggle interrupts her and she turns in the direction to spot something in the distance.

Her eyes widen as she catches sight of flames glowing in the distance and for a moment she feels an odd sense of calm. The flames are a bright blue and continue to grow and grow…Until something humanoid forms…

A face…Her face…Golden eyes…

“Move it!”

Akira blinks as her shoulder brushes against a stranger and she gasps as she glances around frantically as she tries to move out of another person's way. Everyone is moving again and she shakes her head before her finger pulls the strange icon down the screen and into the trash can.

Spacing out twice in a day, what is wrong with her?

Her parents had asked her to sleep before she left home and she did do that, maybe because she hadn't eaten so much today? That might be the case considering she only ate the wrapped up sandwich her mother hastily shoved into her bag at the last minute. She'll have to stop by somewhere and get something quick then...

Her eyes focus on her screen again as she descends the steps down to another train station as she reads over the text carefully. She steps away from the crowd again, this time taking refuge in a little space away from the main walkway and studies how her father texted out which line she has to go on next. The awkward way her father used an arrow consisting of dashes to each train line makes her smile.

The ache in her chest returns and she lightly taps her forehead with her left hand to remind herself that she isn't back home. She's alone...And she knew that her parents were right about this. If only they weren't so afraid of others...

She looks up from her phone when she hears a sigh and steps back a bit when she spots a young man leaning against the wall in front of her. He appears to be close to her age, if not a year older, and has shaggy light brown hair that hides his face as he hangs his head. Akira can’t stop staring at him as he lets out another sigh and raises a gloved hand to rest against his forehead before wiping it.

He looked tired…

There’s a moment of hesitation as she keeps looking at him as he continues to stand in front of her. She shouldn’t bother with him, it isn’t like she’s a part of whatever was going in his life. Yet the more she stares at him the more compelled she is to do…something for him.

“Your heart is what got you in trouble in the first place,” she faintly remembers her mother sighing before pulling her into a hug before she left on the train, “But…Wait what can I say…You’ve always been one to do things that seemed right to her. Regardless...”

She glances around before spotting a soda machine nearby and makes a beeline towards it.

Her hand shoves her phone into her bag before taking out her coin purse and taking a few coins out. The loud thud makes her wince a bit, but she wastes no time before taking the soda out. Making her way back to the boy she stands beside him before gently setting the can by his feet.

She hesitates for a moment and watches as he keeps his head down before he seems to notice the soda can at his feet.

“Huh? What’s this?”

She can feel her face turn a little warm as he turns his head towards her and her stormy gray eyes meet his dark red ones. She quickly ducks her head down, a poor execution of a bow, before turning around quickly to blend into the crowd. From behind she can hear him stutter as he’s probably looking at the can to her before calling out again.

“W-Wait a moment!”

Akira only turns her head for a moment to see him still facing in her direction, his right hand holding the drink while the other is raised as if trying to reach towards her. Her lips form a smile and she raises her hand in a wave before disappearing around the corner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am shipping trash, let me put that out there. I have a personalized trashcan.
> 
> Thank you once again for reading and once again I will be posting and updating this story up on fanfiction.net as well!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She finally settles down in the place she'll stay for a year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Running in with the disclaimer again.
> 
> I DO NOT OWN PERSONA AT ALL!!!
> 
> Anywho here is another chapter, enjoy!

She stared at the house for a moment, looking at her phone and the name plate to be certain she was in the right place.

The sight of the backstreets of Yongen-Jaya stirred up a more comfortable feeling and it reminded her a little of the streets of her hometown if she studied it hard enough. Though it was more cramped up together, but the charm was there as she had made her way to the house.

She now stood staring at the name on the plate reading SAKURA before raising her finger to press the doorbell.

“….?”

Her finger pressed against the button again only to have her lips turned down into a frown, “What?”

Was no one home? Akira scratched the back of her head only to jump as she heard someone sigh, “Looks like no one’s home.” She turned around to see a deliveryman stare down at his phone, “Oh, wait. Sakura-san’s usually at his café around this time. Well Leblanc’s in the back alley so I should make my other deliveries first.”

Leblanc…?

Well she had heard about the place, but she and her parents didn't factor in that the man wouldn't be home by the time she arrived. Akira quickly tapped against her phone as her feet lead her away from the house, there was no point in sticking around if the man wasn’t home. Tucking a stray hair behind her ear she stared down as her phone gave her directions to her new destination.

“Leblanc…Leblanc,” she muttered to herself as her feet lead her down the street and stopped in front of what looked to be a narrowed street. Akira glanced at her phone and noted that Leblanc was just down the path. Pushing her phone into her bag she slowly walked down the path stopping as she came upon a small building and stared up at it.

The store’s sign was a tad dirty, but she could clearly read Leblanc on the red and white canopy hanging over the front. She stares at the door for a brief moment before reaching out and grasping the handle to push the door.

The café smells quite strongly of coffee as she walks in and her eyes glance about the interior curiously. The inside seems rather outdated or rather more retro compared to other coffee shops she had been. Her eyes land on an elderly couple seated in a booth with two cups of coffee in front of them. She can faintly make out the coffee still in their cups and wonders if they even took a sip of their drink. Her focus falls onto the man who is seated at the counter and she watches in interest as he stares at his newspaper.

The pen in his hand slowly taps on the paper, probably playing a crossword.

Unlike the elderly couple at the table, he doesn’t appear much older and seems closer in age to her father. The apron over the pink shirt makes her tilt her head to the side. “Sa-“

“A public transit bus was driven down an opposing lane with its customers still in it!” Akira shuts her mouth as the host on the television screen suddenly raises his voice, “The citizens can’t live in peace if this keeps up.”

“How frightening,” the elderly man sighs as his wife shakes her head with a click of her tongue, “What could be going on? Didn’t something similar happen just the other day?” Akira frowns as she takes a glance over to the man at the counter. He taps his pen against the paper with a bit more force before speaking up, “Vertical is…the name of a shellfish used for farming pearls…”

“Oysters? Isn’t that the answer?”

Her voice projects a bit too well and breaks whatever concentration the man has as he and the couple turn to look at her. Akira tenses and her fingers grip her bag a bit tighter before clearing her throat, “Good afternoon. I’m looking for Sojiro Sakura.”

The man at the counter squints at her before blinking, “Oh right. They did say that was today.” He quickly folds up his paper and sets it down before standing up. The elderly couple continues to stare at her before nodding, “Well, we’ll be going now. The payment’s on the table.”

“Thanks for coming,” the man replies as the older man continue, “This place is in the back alley, so there are no worries of a car crashing in here.”

“…A what now?”

She watches in interest as the man frowns at the other’s words and wonders if he was too concentrated on his crossword to not have heard the television. It wouldn’t be a surprise to her; the stories of accidents in Tokyo were quite the news to share even in her hometown. She heard them enough to start tuning them out or just nod in agreement whenever someone happily boosted how safe their town was compared to how a city.

“There’s been a string of those rampage accidents, you know. I just hope that none happen around here.” The woman nods in agreement to her husband’s words as the man just shrugs as he crosses his arms, “It’s none of my concern.”

“Hahaha, we’ll see you next time.” Akira quickly steps out of the way as the two pass her, nodding to them both slightly before watching the man study the table and sigh, “Four hours for just a single cup of joe. So…You’re the kid? Akira right?”

“It’s nice to meet you Sakura-san.”

She hates the way her voice comes out timid and grits her teeth for a moment before straightening her posture, “I’m Akira Kurusu…Thank you for taking me in.” The man, Sojiro, frowns before shrugging. The action making Akira relax slightly, but not enough to truly feel comfortable with the other.

“Just stick with Sojiro alright? As you know you’ll be in my custody for a year,” Sojiro speaks up before taking the cups off the table and setting them on the counter, “I was wondering what kind of unruly kid would show up, but you’re the one huh? Can’t say I didn’t expect you being so…well. In person you’re much better than what I was left with.”

 _“Was he expecting me to look like a delinquent?”_ Akira can only stare at the floor for a brief moment before raising her eyes back to look at Sojiro as he looks back at her through his own glasses, _“Maybe I should have met his expectations and come in here looking like a gyaru.”_

Sojiro pushes his glasses up to his eyes before speaking again, “Have you been told? A customer of mine and your parents know each other and-”

“They asked for you to take care of me…I’m aware.”

The story being that her mother’s old friend from college knew Sojiro and upon hearing her circumstances offered to extend a hand in helping them. Her parents had been desperate at this point and here she was. She pushes her glasses up closer to her eyes as Sojiro pauses one last time before shaking his head, “Well if you know the full story, shouldn’t matter anyway. Follow me.”

Adjusting her bag she hurries in step behind him as he leads her to a small staircase tucked in the very back of the café. The steps creak underneath her feet and she can see some bits of dust clinging to the top steps as they enter what she supposes is the store’s attic space.

Sojiro’s footsteps leave a trail on the floor as she studies the attic, taking note of the clutter made up of boxes and bags. Dust is everywhere and she glances down at her feet to notice her shoes leave marks on the wooden floor boards. Luckily the attic doesn’t smell, but she can’t stop her lips from forming into a tight line as Sojiro speaks up.

“This is your room. I at least gave you sheets for your bed,” the man points over to the small bed set up in the furthermost corner of the room before looking at her, “Hm? What’s wrong? You look like you wanna say something.”

“It’s cluttered,” she suddenly speaks up before shutting her mouth at the narrowed look she receives from him, “But…I’m sure I can clean up the place.”

“You’re right about that,” Sojiro answers her immediately making her shift in place as he leans against the table next to him, “I’ll be leaving after I lock up each day so you’ll be alone at night. No funny business though got it? Be aware I have all right to kick you out if you have a toe out of line.”

“Yes sir. I’m very well aware of that,” she sighs before adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder, “I know this.”

“Well then you already know I know your situation then,” Sojiro spoke as he tugged at the end of his goatee, “You were protecting a woman from a man who was forcing himself onto her. He got injured and in the process you were sued.”

**_“Damn brat I’ll sue!”_ **

“That’s what you get for sticking your nose in a matter between two adults. And to top it off you did injure him right?”

**_“Stop it! Let me go!”_ **

Akira said nothing before sighing as Sojiro continued, “And now you’ve got a criminal record, got expelled from your high school too. The courts ordered you to transfer and move out here, which your parents approved of.”

 _“More like they had no choice,”_ her right foot slowly shifting a bit until the heel rested in the center side of her left foot as he kept speaking, _“They couldn’t take the gossip back home. How everyone suddenly just left or just gossiped behind our backs.”_

Everyone left as soon as it got out she had a criminal record now.

Her fingers grip her bag straps tighter as she remembered the whispers of everyone back home and the way her parents suddenly grew distant. Not to say they weren’t unloving, but they could have tried harder. She hears Sojiro shift a bit and glances up to watch the man stick his hands in his pockets, “It’s best that you not talk about anything unnecessary while you stay here. I am in the restaurant business you know. Behave yourself for a year and as long as nothing happens your probation will be lifted.”

“And if I don’t, I’m sent to juvie,” she finished before shifting her feet to stand up straight, “I’ve been warned.”

“Good,” Sojiro huffed before walking up to her, “Now we’ll be going to Shujin Academy tomorrow. We’ll introduce ourselves properly to the staff there.”

Akira only nods as Sojiro tugs on his goatee again, “It’s rare that anyplace would accept someone like you. Though still a waste of my Sunday.”

“…I apologize for the inconvenience.”

Sojiro only narrows his eyes at her before letting out a huff and nodding towards the boxes set in the middle of the attic, “Your luggage arrived earlier, I left them over there.” Akira nods before taking a step forward as Sojiro begins to move towards the stairs, “I’ll be downstairs.”

“Yes,” she replies before setting her bag down onto the couch and quickly waves her hand as a puff of dust emerges up into the air. Holding back a cough she quickly turns to the boxes and curiously looks them over.

There is a large box that she knows is filled with clothing and other necessities she needed, but the second box makes her frown as she carefully begins to open the large box first. She needs to change out of her uniform first if she was planning to clean the attic.

Settling for a fitted white V-neck sweater and faded blue skinny jeans Akira zips up her boots before advancing to the second box to open. Unlike the first this one was longer and as she gently shook it she could hear a faint rattling inside it that was oddly familiar.

Opening the box Akira sighs as she catches sight of black parts of a familiar barre she had back home along with a shoe box carefully placed at the end. “Of course she would,” she sighs as she takes the shoe box out and opens it. Her mother had placed both her ballet slippers and pointe shoes carefully into the box and Akira can only smile as she runs a finger over the black leather of the slipper.

She takes the box and settles it on the couch along with her bag; she’ll assemble it once she gets the rest of the room clean. Turning she folds her sleeves up before sighing, “Now where to start?” 

* * *

“Seriously? I heard you making all sorts of noises up here, but I didn’t think you were actually cleaning.”

She turns her head towards Sojiro as he speaks up from the landing and only nods to him in greeting before getting up from the floor. She had just finished cleaning up a while ago and had spent the rest of her time assembling her barre once she found a spot for it. Almost all signs of dust and cobwebs were gone and now the room seemed to sparkle a little bit from all the dusting and mopping she had done to clean up the place.

“Sojiro-san,”  she stands and steps a bit closer to the man, “Did I make too much of a racket?”

“Uh no, but hm. Actually, the place doesn’t look that bad. Nice job I guess,” the man’s lips tug into a smile as he seemed to study the room. Akira watches him pause as he regards the barre set up by the table. He tilts his head before looking at her and pointing a finger towards it, “What’s this?”

“My barre,” she answers before walking over and settling a hand over the metal pole, “My mother shipped it over I guess. I told her I only needed my clothes, but I guess she wanted me to have it here.”

“Barre? You uh do ballet?”

Her lips tug into a smile at his question before nodding, “It’s something I’ve been doing. Though I doubt I’ll ever be a professional.”

“Huh, well just don’t get too loud up here,” Sojiro tells her before taking one last look at the barre curiously, “Didn’t peg you for a dancer…” Akira only shrugs before dropping her hand from the barre as he continues, “Why don’t you go to bed for tonight? I’m going to close up shop and get myself out of here.”

“Good night then Sojiro-san,” Akira answers as the man nods before making his way to the stairs again, “Oh and, don’t get sick from staying up to late. I’m not looking after you if you do, got it?” She nods before stopping a moment and smiling, “What’s so fun-“

Sojiro halts as she carefully slides her right leg behind her and raises her hands up before bowing to him. The movement is something simple to her, but she doubts it’s anything normal to Sojiro as she straightens up, “I’ll keep that in mind. Good night.”

The man stares at her in silence before shaking his head, “Night.” She holds back a giggle as the man leaves before taking her phone out and quickly snapping a picture of the barre to send to her mother.

Once sent she quickly sets her phone down on the bed before quickly undoing her braids allowing her long hair to fall out in waves around her shoulders.

Time for bed.

Her phone rings out from its spot as she pulls loose black shirt over her head and she frowns, her mother didn’t text back that quickly…

Walking over she picks up her phone and frowns as a familiar red eye app appears on the screen and runs her fingers through her hair, “That’s weird. It’s back on my phone again. I was sure I deleted it. I better get rid of it…”

Her finger presses against the screen and she drags the app down into the trashcan at the bottom before sighing. “I should go to sleep now. It’s been a long day…” With that Akira sets her phone on the window sill and walking towards the end of the room to switch off the lights. Her eyes survey the attic one last time before sighing, she'll be staying here for a year...She might as well make the most of it.

With that she turns the lights off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Akira knowing ballet, Akira knowing ballet!
> 
> Just throwing out a personal head canon of mine in this. Hopefully you all enjoy me chanting this out in the background ha ha. Personally for male Akira I have a bit of a preference to him knowing gymnastics and for female Akira I just like the idea of her being a ballerina.
> 
> I'll go back into my trashcan now ha ha.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She continues to settle down along with a dream that makes her question her fate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING PERTAINING TO THE PERSONA SERIES!!
> 
> Also!
> 
> I SEE YOU AKIRA! I SEE AKIRA DOING A PIROUETTE!!! ATLUS YOU DID A THING!
> 
> At this point Atlus might as well just take my money.

This is a dream….This is a dream…This has to be a dream.

She shivers as she clings to the bars of the cell as she attempts to keep herself warm in the black and white striped uniform she wears. It’s oddly very familiar to that of a prisoner uniform, granted the style of the outfit wasn’t what a real uniform was.

The shirt, while covering her upper body, had a wide collar making it slip over her shoulders as she shifted her weight while she stood. It forced her to move the fabric over one shoulder to the next when she felt it slip a bit too far. Instead of long pants she wore shorts that peeked out slightly under the hem of her large shirt and only made her self-conscious knowing that it looked like she wasn’t wearing any bottoms.

With her legs exposed to the cold air she kept shivering and the weight of the shackle on her left ankle felt heavy as she stood.

The shoes on her feet weren’t normal shoes, but instead some mockery of her black ballet slippers. The black leather was torn and the soles seemed to be worn out so thin that she might as well been barefoot in the cell. Even the black ribbons were too loose around her ankles and the ones on her left seemed to only be held in place thanks to the metal shackle.

The tiny size of the cell made her shake the bars hard again as she stared at the two twin girls who stood in front of the cell, their backs turned to her despite the obvious sneer they had when she had come up to the bars. Both wore identical blue uniforms along with similar platinum blond hair and gold eyes when she had seen them at first.

Sisters?

She shakes her head before turning her attention to the center of the room. Both girls were facing towards him and Akira shudders a bit as the goblin like man at the table continues to slowly tap his nails against the wood. He had been staring at her for a long time since she had woken up and hadn’t made a sound as she kept shaking the bars.

Those wide eyes were staring right through her and she can’t help, but remember the stories of monsters hiding underneath her bed as a child. She swallows loudly just as the man finally moves, extending a hand out to her as he spoke.

“Trickster, welcome to my Velvet Room.”

“…Velvet..Room? Ah!”

Akira flinches as something hits the bars creating the sounds of sparks before looking to one of the girls on her right who smirks up at her. “Well you’ve finally spoken Inmate, it’s about time!” Now facing her Akira can make out she wears an eye patch over her right eye and her hair is carefully styled underneath her hat into two perfect buns.

She backs away a bit as this girl hits her bars again and notes the faint sound of sparks is coming from the baton she wields in her hands.

“We were thinking you were asleep, but you’ve finally come to!”

“The you in reality is currently fast asleep,” the other girl speaks up from her left and Akira watches in interest as the girl’s braid swings a bit as she pivots to face her. She wears an eye patch over her left eye and unlike her other counterpart holds a clipboard. Not so dangerous, but Akira remains silent as she continues, “You are only experiencing a dream.”

So it was a dream…

With that she loosens her hold on the bars, but cries out as the twin with the baton hits them again, “You’re in the presence of our master, stand up straight!”

Akira twitches, but does as she’s told as the man chuckles at the young girl’s words before he rests his hand back down on the table, “Welcome, it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance. This place exist between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a room that only those who are bound by a ‘contract’ may enter.”

 _“I don’t remember signing anything,”_ Akira frowns as the man’s fingers begin to tap on the table, _“Should I…Should I act dumb?”_ She eyes the man and leans forward a bit against the bars as his smile grows, “I am Igor, the master of this place. Remember it well my dear.”

“Why am I here?” The girl with the baton lets out a huff at the question before Igor chuckles, “I summoned you to speak of important matters…It involves your life as well.”

That catches her attention.

“What do you mean? What important matters?” she grips the bars tighter as the man looks away from her and studies the room they’re in, “Still, this is quite a surprise. The state of this room reflects the state of your own heart. To think a prison would appear as such.”

Was he ignoring her?

She leans away as his wide eyes return to stare at her and she shudders a little as his grin widens again. It’s as if he knew that she was doubting his attention to her and lightly tugs on her collar to cover her left shoulder as he speaks up, “You truly are a ‘prisoner’ of fate. In the near future, there is no mistake that ruin awaits you.”

“Ruin?”

Her breath hitches up a bit as his fingers tap against the table again and she doesn’t miss how his shoulders seem to raise up a bit at her reaction. The man chuckles before shaking his head a bit, “Worry not,” Igor tells her and rests his chin against his other hand as he keeps tapping the table, “There is a means to oppose such a fate. You must be…rehabilitated, towards freedom. That is your only means to avoid ruin.”

She swallows a bit as he extends out his hand towards her making her back up a step as his grin only grows.

“Now…Do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the world?”

“…I’d rather avoid ruin.”

Something in her words makes her feel an odd shiver race down her spine as she stares at Igor. There was something different now that she had said those words out loud and for a moment she felt she had just brought down the hammer on a nail sealing her fate...

She snaps out of her thoughts as Igor chuckles and his fingers slowly curl towards his palm, “Then allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation, my Trickster.” Akira inhales loudly as she watches his fingers spray out on the surface of the table before tapping again before jerking back as the two young girls in front of her cell suddenly turn to her.

“Ah yes, pardon me,” Igor speaks up again with a chuckle, “I haven’t introduced the others, to your right is Caroline and to your left, Justine. They serve as wardens here.”

 _“Wardens? These two?”_ Well, it did explain why the baton in Caroline’s hands looked rather suspicious with its cackling every time she hit the cell’s bars. Akira stiffened as Caroline’s lips twisted up into a smirk, “Ha! Try to struggle as hard as you like!”

“The duty of wardens is to protect inmates,” Justine spoke up while her face remained expressionless as she regarded Akira, “We are also your collaborators. That is…If you remain obedient.”

She keeps her lips in a tight line as Igor chuckles as her eyes rest on him again, “I shall explain these two’s roles on another occasion. It seems the night is waning, it’s almost time.”

“Time? Time for what?” Akira grips the bars tighter and she fights the urge to press herself a bit closer and instead tries to push against the bars. The metal rattles as she shakes the bars, “What are you talking about?!” Her voice is much louder and echoes throughout the room as Igor’s fingers stop tapping against his table, “Take your time to slowly come to understand this place. We shall surely meet again, eventually…”

Her body relaxes a bit as she begins to have a feeling that nothing bad would happen only to step back as a shrill ring echoes around them.

“Time’s up!” She looks at Caroline whose hands are behind her back as she stands at attention before her, “Now hurry up and go back to sleep!” Akira looks towards Justine who regards her with a blank expression before nodding towards the cot in her cell. She slowly backs away before settling down onto it and exhales loudly as she closes her eyes.

“Fret not Trickster…You will return.”

Akira inhaled loudly before feeling her body suddenly sinking down into an odd sensation of heaviness. Before she can even exhale, her entire body tenses up as her eyes snap open as the alarm on her phone rings out through the attic.

Another dream…Right?

Akira swings her legs over her bed before allowing herself to hang her head as she lets out a loud exhale.

“…Ruin…Rehabilitation? What sort of dream was that?”

Either way, there’s no point in thinking it over…Not right now.

She reaches out to her cell phone and looks at the time. It’s early in the morning, very early, and she should get ready to head out with Sojiro to the school. Thoughts about twin girls with eye patches and a weird goblin man can wait until after she gets this done. Lightly ruffling her bangs a bit she lets out another yawn before moving.

From her bed she makes her way over to her bag that still rests on the couch to retrieve her hair brush. Her uniform is still neatly folded on top of a chair which gives her an easier amount of time to get dressed quickly. By the time she’s done braiding her hair back into their usual two neat plaits she can hear footsteps coming up the stairs.

“Huh, looks like you’re up.”

“Good morning Sojiro-san,” she greets him as he glances around her room briefly before nodding a bit to her.

“Morning. We’ll be heading out to the school to introduce yourself to the faculty.”

Straight to the point this early in the morning huh?

Biting back her tongue she only nods as Sojiro pushes his hat a bit as he keeps talking, “The school is in the Aoyma district. It’ll cost you a bit to ride the train there and the route transfers are a pain.” Akira blinks before reaching towards her bag and pulling out her wallet only to hear Sojiro clear his throat, “I’ll be driving you there, but only for today.”

She stares at the man as he narrows his eyes at her and she drops her wallet back into her bag, “Thank you..Sojiro-san.” The man grunted before lightly tugging at his goatee, “It’s no problem…Anyway, let’s get going.”

Akira nodded in agreement before grabbing her bag and following the man down the stairs as he tilted his hat a bit, “Can’t believe I’m spending my day like this…”

* * *

Shujin Academy stood tall and proud…A very tall building made of concrete with a single school gate that made Akira feel more inclined to agree with the old saying.

School was indeed a prison.

Her eyes stared at her shoes as she waited for Sojiro to finish writing down on a few papers before slowly shifting her left foot towards her right in an attempt to stand at third position. A faint coughing interrupted her concentration and she lifted her head up as the principal spoke.

The balding man’s beige colored suit seemed more yellow to Akira as she attempted to keep eye contact with the man as he cleared his throat again, “To reiterate again, just so we’re clear. You will be immediately expelled if you cause any problems.” Akira only nodded her head in agreement as Sojiro sighed beside her and fiddled with his hat. She stole a quick glance over to him as he stared up at the ceiling, “Honestly I hesitated on accepting someone like you,” the principal continued, “But there were some circumstances on our side. You may have done a variety of things of hiding in your hometown, but you will behave yourself here.”

“…Yes sir,” Akira gripped the edge of her skirt a little tighter as the man huffed at her reply and resisted the urge to grit her teeth.

It wasn’t a no brainer that she had been expecting this sort of treatment yet the very reality of it only made her blood boil just a little.

“If you are thrown out from our school, there will be o place for you to go. Keep that in mind young lady.”

“Yes,” was her only reply as he huffed again before redirecting his attention to the woman that had been standing by him since she and Sojiro had entered the office, “This is the teacher in charge of your class.”

The woman looked as indifferent as Sojiro as she finally looked over at Akira and she couldn’t miss the blank expression as she spoke, “I’m Sadayo Kawakami.” Akira watched as her new teacher fished out something from the pocket her denim skirt and slamming it down on the desk, “Here’s your student ID. Be sure to read the rules as well. Any violations will send you straight to the guidance office and if you do cause problems…I won’t be able to protect you.”

Akira reached over to the desk and hung her head slightly to avoid making eye contact with the two adults in front of her as Kawakami spoke up a little louder, “That IS your promise, yes. Principal Kobayakawa?”

“Yes, she is responsible for all her actions.”

Akira’s fingers gripped her ID tightly as her new teacher let out a loud sigh, “But really though, why me? There should’ve been better candidates.”

Was she invisible to them?

Were they honestly talking about her while she was still in the office, in front of her?

She stared at the ID in her hand as the two spoke regarding Kawakami’s misfortune of being the only teacher of her grade with an open spot. If they were going to talk about her, she might as well try to say something right? She could finally say something other than the confirmations that she was aware of her situation or that she was listening. Something inside of her was boiling and Akira's mouth was slowly beginning to open until Sojiro loudly coughed, “If you’re done explaining things, mind if we get going? I got a store to get back to.”

Never had she thought hearing Sojiro’s annoyed tone sound like a grace from God.

Her boiling temper quickly simmered and she took a moment to let out an exhale as she shoved her student ID into her bag. She was even starting to take a few steps back and ready to pivot right around to go to the door. Her fingers were already reaching out to the door knob until the principal spoke up again, “Sakura-san, please keep a close eye on her. Don’t let her cause any trouble…”

Again something stirred inside of her and she resisted the urge to toss a glare over her shoulder to the man. Instead she closed her eyes and breathed in quietly, _“Don’t react,”_ she told herself as she faintly heard Sojiro let out a low huff and peered over her shoulder to watch him look at the other man, “Well…I’ll be sure to have a serious talk about the situation she’s in.” Sojiro gave a nod before turning around to look at her and giving her an eye roll. The action surprised her and she blinked as he loudly sighed, "Well c'mon. Let's get a move on then."

“R-Right,” she answered before quickly grabbing the door knob and opening the door for him as he looked at her with a quirked brow, “What are you doing? Go on ahead first, even if you are a kid you're still a girl. I have manners.”

“S-Sorry Sojiro-san,” Akira quickly walked through the door first as Sojiro held it open for her as Kawakami’s voice spoke up loudly just before he closed it, “Come to the faculty office when you arrive at school tomorrow. I’ll show you to your classroom.”

She merely nodded as Sojiro shut the door behind them and sighed, “They’re treating you like some kinda nuisance…I guess that’s what it means to have a criminal record.” The man walked ahead of her as she gently tugged on the strap of her bag, “Turns out your past follows you wherever you go.”

“I’m…Aware,” Akira answered before silence fell on the two of them as they made their way down the hall.

She stared briefly at Sojiro as he studied their surroundings as they began to make their way downstairs, had he spoken up because he noticed her temper flaring? She stopped on the last two steps of the staircase before speaking up, “I already have a guess of what you’ll say, but…I’m assuming if I get in trouble with the school and get expelled you will kick me out correct?”

“Sharp girl aren’t you?” Sojiro answered as he turned to look at her, “We’ve already had this talk about the mess you’re in when you first arrived. So I won’t repeat everything again obviously.”

“I understand. I’ll be careful Sojiro-san,” she lightly tugged at the ends of one of her braids before grasping the railing and jumping over the last two steps. The man jolted a bit at her action before letting out a scoff, “Watch it! I thought you were a ballerina…You want to risk hurting your ankle!?”

Akira blinked as Sojiro quickly cleared his throat before putting his hat back on, “Young people these days…Well. Nothing else to see here, school never changes at all huh? We’re going home so…Pick up the pace alright?”

She nods before stopping in her steps and giving Sojiro a grin as he hears her footsteps halt, “What now-“

He immediately steps back as she passes by him quickly, her arms slightly stretched open as she moved forward ahead of the man in a chasse. She reaches the front entrance way and quickly turns around to face him before doing the same bow she had done to him last night. Sojiro stares at her before slowly shaking his head and hurrying himself over, “You’re…An odd one. You can't just dance everywhere you know.”

Akira only smiled as she followed after her guardian.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still a bit of a slow roll with the story, but we will eventually pick up!
> 
> I apologize for any spelling or grammatical errors as well!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loving texts from someone back home and preparation at the starting line for a normal life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING PERTAINING TO THE PERSONA SERIES!!
> 
> Here’s another headcanon of mine~~ Please enjoy this new chapter!
> 
> Père-French for father  
> mon chaton- French for my kitten, often used for male and female.  
> mon p’tit chaton-French for my little kitten.

Akira resisted the urge to sigh as Sojiro’s car remained parked since they had left the school. The man tapped his right index finger against the steering wheel and kept grunting every few minutes. She stared out ahead before jumping a bit as her cell phone vibrated loudly.

Shoving her hand into her bag she pulled out the phone and quickly unlocked the screen as a new message popped up.

**[Père]: Mon chaton, how are you? Have you been well? You sent your mother a picture of the barre. I apologize, I couldn’t stop her from sending it over. It’s the only thing you sent though. Please reply back when you can my dear.**

_“Père?”_

Akira stared at the message for a moment as she could only imagine her stepfather staring at his phone waiting for her reply. She lightly tapped the screen and pulling up the picture of the school she had snapped when Sojiro wasn’t looking.

**I’m okay Père. We went to the school today.**

***Attached image***

**[Père]: Ah, quite different from home. So all is well? Do you need us to send you anything else for you? Do not hesitate to tell us mon p’tit chaton.**

**I will be okay Père. I love you and Mom.**

**[Père]: And we love you too mon chaton.**

Akira smiled as she read over the text messages from her father before tucking her phone back into her bag as Sojiro tapped on the wheel of the car, "Your boyfriend?”

She shook her head immediately before letting out a scoff, “No…I didn’t have one.” Even before her arrest she wasn’t exactly steady with anyone back home. Most potential boyfriend candidates couldn’t get past the first date or confessions were turned down. She was already well aware that no one would be jumping up to ask her out anytime soon anyway with her new reputation. Akira stared outside of her window briefly before answering Sojiro, “It was my father. He just wanted to know how I was doing.”

“Oh I see,” Sojiro sighed as his fingers hit the wheel a bit harder, “Traffic isn’t moving at all. Ugh, you’re taking the train tomorrow.” Akira nodded in agreement and steeled herself as the car jolted forward before the man sighed, “So…How was it? The school, I mean. Think you can manage?”

“I think I can manage,” she responded before pushing her glasses up a bit as the man beside her scoffed, “Well…You were expelled once and now you’re enrolling to a new school right away. I doubt there’ll be anyone who will be sympathetic towards you. Then again what can you expect…Just keep yourself in check. This was more trouble than I could imagine…What a troublesome kid I’ve taken in.”

Akira could feel her lip twitch a bit as she regarded her current guardian before opening her mouth, “…I understand you were asked to do this Sojiro-san, and you could have refused…So why?”

“I…”

The man hesitated for a moment and Akira could faintly feel the car moving a bit again before he stroked his goatee before speaking, “I was asked and I just happened to agree with it at the time. I’ve already been paid for it too after all.”

Of course.

Sojiro was not a direct contact of her mother’s and it was obvious that he was rather reluctant for taking her in without some form of payment. Her own parents had told her ahead of time and she still remembered the looks of worry on their faces when they told her the news. It was the only solution left and they had no choice, but to accept it.

She took her phone out again as Sojiro cleared his throat before reaching over to the radio, “Again, a subway has derailed at Shibuya Station, greatly affecting the timetable all across the-“

“Another accident? So that’s why it’s so crowded. There’s been a lot of those lately,” Sojiro remarked before lowering the volume again, “…Wait. Don’t you mean stepfather?”

Akira looked over to Sojiro as he glared ahead towards the truck blocking their way, “I mean, not to pry. I heard in passing that your mother remarried from our mutual acquaintance.”

“My biological father divorced my mother when I was younger,” Akira shook her head as she faintly remembered the man, “I consider him, my stepfather, as much as a real father than him though.” Sojiro glanced at her from the side before focusing back to the cars in front of him, “I see…Sometimes family by blood isn’t always close. Understandable.” Akira blinked at the man’s words before staring down at her phone. His words took her by surprise a bit considering that many people were either indifferent about her parents or a bit put off.

Being married to a foreigner wasn’t new, but to a few people back home it was quite different and considering that her mother had been divorced…That was another reason why she hadn’t fought so much when she was sent to Tokyo. It was already hard for her parents, she refused to add more to the burden…

She stared at her phone again before quickly opening up her text messages and began to type up a new message to her father.

**Père, I really do love you and Mom.**

**[Père]: Mon chaton? Is something wrong?**

**I’m okay…I just wanted to tell you again. I love you guys.**

**[Père]: And we love you so much.**

**< 3**

* * *

 A black notebook was slammed down on the table in front of her as Sojiro took his hat off while staring at his cell phone, “Talk about a gruesome accident…Eighty people were involved.”

“That’s horrible,” Akira voiced out as she carefully took her chopsticks and stirred her noodles, “This has been happening a lot lately right?” Sojiro let out a grunt in response before putting his phone back into his pocket.

They had arrived to the café late; traffic had been so awful that they had been stuck on the road for four hours. Sojiro had been kind enough to allow her to make some instant ramen for her dinner in the kitchen, but he had also said he needed to talk to her.

She picked up the black notebook and slowly opened the front cover to the first blank page, “It’s a diary,” Sojiro explained as she closed it, “Be sure to write in it. While you’re under probation there are no special limitations on what you do…Besides following that law. I’m responsible and obligated to report on you from time to time. So I want you to record your daily activates.”

“Even if they’re boring?" she questioned as she tapped against the black over, "What if I write in French? Would that make it more interesting?”

Sojiro narrowed his eyes to her and she cleared her throat before grabbing her chopsticks again, “Got it…Write everything I do. No funny business. I understand Sojiro-san."

Again her guardian grunted before a ring of a cell phone made him stop adding more to their conversation. Akira focused on blowing on the hot noodles as the older man turned away from her to answer his call “Hey, what’s up?” She raised an eyebrow at the much softer tone the man was using as he nodded to the words of the other person he was talking to, “I’m about to leave right now so don’t worry. I’ll be there in no time….Uh-huh. I’ll see you soon.”

Akira slurped her noodles loudly as Sojiro returned his attention back to her, “Well I’m off. I’ll lock the door so you can do whatever you want for tonight. Just don’t mess up my store. I see anything missing…” She stared at the steam coming from the broth of her noodles before nodding, “Of course Sojiro-san. No funny business.”

“Right,” Sojiro’s hat returned back to the top of his head as he began to walk away from her, “Oh don’t stay up too late though. You got school tomorrow. Once you’re done with your dinner try to head to bed.” Akira nodded before looking up to see the man open the door and place his key into the lock. She was starting to bring another mouthful of noodles to her mouth again before immediately jumping up, “Wait! Sojiro-san!”

“Huh? What I’m-“

Running over Akira immediately pulled the door a bit so it was wide enough for her to step outside and flip the store sign from OPEN to CLOSED, “You almost forgot this.” She glanced over to Sojiro who stared at her before the corners of his lips turned up into a small smile, “Heh, well I guess I almost did. Good thing you were down here still. It’d be a pain to just walk back here. Thanks…”

Akira’s own lips turned up into a smile of her own before she waved to him, “Have a good night Sojiro-san.”

“I mean it, don’t stay up too late.”

“Yes, yes,” Akira agreed before shutting the door closed as the man made his way back home and sighed.

“It’s been a long day….”

She trudged over to the booth and plopped down into her seat before picking up her cell phone and opening the map app on her phone. Using one hand she carefully pulled out another helping of noodles as she carefully typed out Yongen-Jaya and Aoyama-Itchome. It was probably best she figure out her route to head to the school to avoid being lost. Staring at the screen she swallowed her noodles before sighing to herself, “It looks like I’ll need to go out to Shibuya first and then transfer lines there.”

She recalled how busy that station was and hoped that maybe tomorrow wouldn’t be so bad.

Closing out the app she blinked as a red icon caught her attention, the same black and red eye stared at her as she immediately pressed her finger against it.

She was so certain she had deleted it last night…

“I’ll just reboot my phone later,” she muttered as she dragged the icon back into the trashcan and placed her phone back down. Bringing the nearly empty noodle cup Akira drank the broth before slamming the container down with a groan, “It’s so creepy…Why does it keep coming back?” The teenager glanced over to the black notebook still by her and picked it up with a frown.

**_Went to Shujin Academy today. Definitely more of a prison than a school._ **

**_Père texted me. I miss him and Mom._ ** ****

**_Received this diary to keep track of my progress._ **

“…I guess this is acceptable,” Akira shut the diary closed before tossing the noodle cup across the café, only to pout as it hit the rim of the trashcan. 

* * *

Last night was much better compared for her than her first night in the attic.

No weird dreams of a blue jailhouse, weird warden twins, and a goblin man at a desk talking about her ruined fate. Definitely no weird voice echoing in her head like her last nap on the train to the city. Overall Akira welcomed the night sleep and began to prepare for the day.

Yanking on her black stockings she lightly brushed her bangs a bit before looking at her clothing box tucked away by the couch. A pair of light pink tights were peeking out from the flaps and she sighed as she looked at her barre. She was too tired to do anything at her barre last night and she was starting to miss actually doing her ballet routine since she settled down in Tokyo. She would have to do some barre work tonight then.

Making that mental note to herself as she tugged on her black loafers and stood up from her bed. Tugging at her blazer and reminding herself she looked fine she made her way to the stairs to grab her bag resting on the table by the threshold.

Lightly tugging on her braids she exhaled before making her way down the stairs.

“Oh you’re up…And you’re actually going to school huh?”

“Good morning Sojiro-san,” Akira greeted as she walked over to the counter as the man seemed to be doing something with a plate, “I’ll head out now so I don’t get lost.” Sojiro remained silent before setting the plate of food and a glass of water onto the counter, “Here. Eat this first before going. Just eat it before customers come in.”

“You…You made me curry for breakfast?” Akira slowly pulled out a chair and set her bag to the one next to her as she regarded the plate. The rice and curry were steaming meaning that Sojiro must have recently cooked it. “Don’t just stare at it, eat up,” Sojiro told her as she quickly grabbed a spoon, “You’re not too skinny, but…”

The first spoonful made Akira blink as she swallowed the next spoonful and the next. While she didn’t quite favor spicy foods, she couldn’t deny that the curry was delicious. The bold taste of spice exploded in her mouth as she eagerly ate everything off her plate before gulping down her glass of water.  She didn’t quite notice how Sojiro was eyeing her carefully as she ate before taking the empty plate and glass, “You’re done so it’s time for you to go.”

“Thank you Sojiro-san,” she gave him a smile as she grabbed her bag and rested it on her shoulder, “It was delicious.”

“Hmph, just hurry over to school now. Don’t get lost or you’ll be late,” the man told her before turning away, “Oh and…Do me a favor and flip the sign outside to OPEN for me will you.”

“I will,” Akira called out as she stepped outside, “…Have a good day today Sojiro-san.” She quickly closed the door just as the man turned around to look at her before quickly flipping the sign over.

Hopefully she didn’t make him feel too weird with that…She didn't know why she chose to have said that to her guardian and she could feel the sinking feeling of regret that maybe it wasn't wise to try and be close to him so soon. Sojiro was still as much of a stranger to her as she was to him and it was blatantly obvious he was only taking care of her due to obligation. Digging out her phone she looked over what she had typed up last night before speed walking down the path towards the station.

“So I get off at Shibuya and then transfer to the Ginza Line,” she whispered to herself as she descended down the stairs towards the train, “This shouldn’t be hard then.”

Her phone rang out as a notification of a received text made her blink.

**[Père]: Your Mother and I wish you a good first day at your new school today ma chaton. <3**

She smiled as she quickly shoved her phone into her bag before quickly boarding the train.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More headcanons I make, what is wrong with me?!
> 
> So yup, Akira's stepfather is French and she knows a few things in French. Her parents are a bit more involved, not too much yet just enough.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The train and a rainy day is the start.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING PERTAINING TO THE PERSONA SERIES!!
> 
> Warning! Sexual harassment for this chapter!

Akira gritted her teeth as her body hit the door as the train shook a bit too hard as it rounded a corner. Her arms tightened her bag a bit closer to her chest as she took a moment to glance around the train car.

 _"There’s so many people crammed in here,”_ she tensed up again as a man and woman in business suits pressed close against her side as the train rounded a corner again, _“It turns out the rumors about Tokyo subways are true. I can’t move at all!"_ Sighing she tried to make herself comfortable in the small space before glancing up briefly to the LCD screen only to let out another sigh.

Sojiro had been right about the possibility of her being late and seeing the effects of yesterday’s accidents only proved that. She would have to book it as soon as she got off the train,  _“I hope I can get off soon though….”_

The teenager pushed her glasses up her nose before pressed against the door again by the man beside her. Akira could only tense up as her right shoulder pressed harder against the glass and she resisted the urge to speak up. Squeezing her eyes she could only exhale before freezing up as a hand slowly brushed up against her thigh.

…What?!

Slowly raising her head up she noticed the smirk on the suited man’s face as his fingers tapped a little closer to her stocking covered limb. “…E…Excuse…me, but…”

She could only cringe at how timid she sounded as the man continued to touch her, “I…Could you not…I…” The words died out as the man’s hand began to trail up towards her skirt and Akira could only shut her eyes as she struggled to say something. Peering out to the crowd around her she noticed no one was looking her way. Her eyes squeezed shut as his fingers began to slowly pinch at her skin and let out a whimper.

**_“Someone help me!”_ **

**_“Just shut up and do what you’re told!”_ **

“Excuse me.”

Akira opened her eyes as soon as she felt the man’s hand disappear from her space and lifted her head up as the man was pushed aside. “I’m sorry sir, but I couldn’t help noticing that you’re definitely invading this young lady’s personal space,” the pleasant looking boy at her side gave the older man a smile, “It wouldn’t do well that when we stop you’ll be reported…Right?” She watched as the older man clicked his tongue before turning away from them as the woman beside him scowled. A few bystanders in the crowd narrowed their eyes as the man brushed past them only to turn back to their phones once they noticed nothing else would happen.

The boy beside her continued to smile at the man before looking down at her, “Are you alright?”

“Not really, but…Thank you,” she replied as she hugged her bag tighter as he stood beside her, “I…I didn’t know how crowded the train was here.”

“Ah, not from the city?”

“No,” Akira shook her head before relaxing a bit in his presence once it became clear he wasn't a threat, “This is only my second time on the train here…Thanks again for helping me.”

“It’s no problem at all. It’s my job helping out people in need,” the boy smiled before glancing around and turned to speak to her, “Would you mind if I stood beside you until we get off…Just to be sure you’re okay that is.” Akira’s lips pulled up into a smile as she nodded, “That would be nice."

He only nodded before carefully maneuvering himself until he was standing beside her, his back against the door as he looked out towards the crowd around them.  _“He’s…Keeping an eye to see if anyone’s coming close to us,”_ Akira noticed before slowly loosening her grip on her bag. The boy beside her seemed to notice she was slowly relaxing before giving her a smile, “We shouldn’t be too far from getting off.”

“Thank goodness,” Akira replied before jolting forward as the train came to a halt. The boy immediately grabbed her before she fell flat onto her face from the train braking, “W-Whoa easy there!” Akira’s face felt hot as she felt the other’s hands resting on her upper arms before helping her stand up straight again, “Well that was certainly unpleasant and surprising. Be sure to hold onto something next time okay?”

Akira nodded as they quickly stepped off the train just before the rest of the passengers could push them off. She exhaled loudly before letting out a gasp as she was shoved forward and stumbled while the boy beside her quickly turned in the direction of the person who had shoved her. The man from the train gave a scowl to them before disappearing with the rest of the crowd as Akira slowly massaged her shoulder before setting her bag strap properly over it.

“Quite an eventful morning hm?” the boy beside her spoke up as she quickly pivoted around to face him and bowed, “Thank you for your help in the train earlier…Thank you.”

“It’s really no trouble at all,” he answered as he flicked at his bangs a bit before frowning, “You’re still new to the city yes…Do you know where you need to go?” Akira pulled out her phone before tapping at the screen, “Um…I have to transfer to the Ginza line.”

“I see, well why don’t we both head over there together.”

“Oh you don’t need to do that for me,” she quickly shoved her phone back into her bag, “I think I can find it myself.” The boy chuckled before shaking his head, “Actually, I’m heading to school myself. The Ginza line is where I have to go myself.”

“O-Oh really I see,” Akira offered him a smile and took a few steps forward, “Let’s get going I guess.”

“Yes let’s be on our way,” the boy smiled and they both began to make their way to the stairs before another rush of crowds would arrive to board the train. Her fingers tugged a bit at her bag strap as she spared a quick glance at her companion.

Something about him was quite familiar…

She eyed the briefcase he held and raised a brow as she noticed the bold letter A on the surface. Perhaps his name started with an A, much like hers. His pea coat covered his top half and his pants were black. There was no emblem or any sort of pattern to his clothing unlike her own plaid skirt and academy symbol on her blazer. He might have been attending a different school…

“Why is it late again?!”

They both stopped to see a small crowd surrounding a worker who bowed lowly to the man who was yelling, “Our apologies sir…However it was a major accident and-“

“This isn’t the first time this has been happening!” the man shouted before he angrily tapping at his phone, “Why weren’t you better prepared for this one?! Useless…”

“We are deeply sorry!”

Akira frowned as she watched the uniformed man bow down to the crowd of agitated people around him. The crowd was making her own gossipy hometown commuters less unbearable and resisted the urge to sigh as her companion beside her glanced around the crowded station. “Well this is quite an issue,” he spoke up before looking over towards a certain direction, “Though…I do believe I know the way around this. If you wish, would you like to follow me?”

“Yes, if it’s not much trouble,” Akira replied only to flinch as she caught sight of the same man from the train in the crowd. He seemed to notice her stare and she immediately ducked her head down. The boy with her seemed to make a low sound of disapproval before a hand reached up to her shoulder making her tense. However his fingers while firm didn't hurt her as he whispered to her, “Keep your head up. That’s how they prey on you. Don't let him see you cower..."

Akira gripped the straps of her bag tighter in her fingers before slowly lifting up her head. The tone in his voice was much different, but she couldn’t quite pinpoint why.

He was right though…That was what he was aiming for wasn’t it?

Her fear…

Her mind traveled back to the night where she had seen that woman and man on the street before exhaling loudly, "You're right. Let's get going then." She lifted her head up and straightened her posture enough before giving the boy beside her a smile, "We can't get anywhere just standing now...Can we?"

The boy returned her smile before adjusting his hold on the briefcase, "Well said, now let's be off now shall we?" Akira only nodded before following in step beside him as they left the crowd.

* * *

“And here we are,” the boy smiled to her as they stepped onto the platform as the train pulled up, “I believe this is your train.”

Akira smiled up at him as she stood in line to enter the train, “I’m certain you’re probably sick of me thanking you, but thank you again for everything.” The boy only chuckled before shrugging, “It’s really no problem at all. Again, it’s my job to help others in need after all ha ha.” Her smile grew a bit before stepping onto the train, “Well…I’ll see you around I guess.”

“Yes,” he replied before blinking, “Oh wait, I didn’t catch your name!” Akira herself blinked in surprise at his words before opening her mouth, “That’s right. Well I’m A-“

The door of the train slid shut just before she could tell the boy her name leaving both teenagers to stare at each other through the glass in shock.

“This is just…This is just cruel and awkward,” Akira muttered as her train slowly left the platform as the boy only gave her a slight wave and a crooked smile. She lightly hit her head against the door and sighed, _“I managed to make one friend…I guess. And I didn’t figure out his name,”_ she sighed before tugging lightly at the ends of her braids, _“I do hope maybe I’ll see him around…”_

She let out another sigh as she tried to keep balance as the train sped down the tracks, the boy did look very familiar to her. Had she run into him before in passing? Just something about him made her feel like she did meet him briefly before. Lightly tapping her foot she blinked as she recalled the boy she had seen in the station when she first arrived to the city. She blinked as she remembered the shaggy brown hair and surprised wide dark red eyes.

Her cheeks felt a bit warm as she lightly hit herself against her left temple with a fist, “Stupid Akira, stupid…”

Now she felt awful for not asking for his name…

Next time she saw him…For sure she’d introduce herself properly.

The train came to a halt as the announcer’s echoed, “Welcome to Aoyama-Itchome.” She straightened up as the doors opened and quickly exited off the train as a few other teenagers in a similar uniform to hers raced out ahead of her. Standing in the middle of the platform she took a moment to glance about before taking her phone out.

Quickly turning around she snapped a picture of the train before it left and quickly sent it to her parents.

***Attached image***

**First day of school. Wish me luck.**

Putting her phone back into her bag she slowly made her way to the exit as she noticed more students around her going down the street in the same direction as she was. _“Thank goodness I’m going the right way then,”_ she grinned a bit before stopping as she felt something hit her shoulder, “Hm?”

“Are you kidding me?!”

“It’s raining!”

“Ugh! This seriously sucks!”

Akira lets out a groan as she dug into her bag only to find no umbrella before running to a closed shop with a canopy as a few students ran past her with umbrellas already open. Again Akira opened her bag and desperately searched through it again in hopes to find an umbrella only to find none. She peered out from the cover only to move herself further back as the rain began to pour harder.

“Just my luck,” she grumbled to herself as she pulled her phone out again to check the time. The time wasn’t too late, but she hoped the rain would lessen up enough in a few more minutes. She was so close to the school too, “Wait a second,” she frowned as a familiar red eye icon began to appear on her screen, “The hell...I thought I deleted this.”

Her finger lingered over the icon only to stop as she saw someone in a white hood walk in front of her and stood beside her under the canopy. She blinked as the person tugged their hood off revealing a girl with blond hair in pigtails who glanced up at the sky before sighing. The girl’s uniform is similar to her own minus the obvious white hoodie and red tights she wore. She's also a bit taller than Akira and by posture alone Akira can feel the other's presence as one of grace perhaps she was a model? 

She stares at the other's light blond hair and light tugs at the ends of her braids curiously before glancing over again only to tense up as their eyes meet.

Bright blue eyes widened as Akira stared back before quickly raising her hand up into a wave, “B-Bonjour.” Instantly Akira lets out a stuttered sound before lightly smacking a hand over her face, “S-Sorry, I meant hello. Hello.”

The girl giggles and offers her a smile, “Do you…Speak French? That was French right?”

“Uh y-yes,” Akira nervously tugged at her left braid before letting it drop from her fingers, “My stepfather’s French…He taught me a few words.” The girl’s smile grows a bit before nodding as she looks back up to the sky as Akira quickly looks up as well, “It doesn’t look like it’ll stop soon.”

“Maybe it’ll lessen up a bit on the downpour eventually,” Akira adds before sighing, “Hopefully.” The other girl nods in agreement as they both continue to study the rain only to look away from the clouds as a car slowly pulls up in front of the storefront. Akira stiffens a bit as the window lowers and she sees a man dressed in a jersey in the front seat.

“Good morning,” the man greets them though Akira notices he’s staring right at the girl beside her, “You want me to give you a ride to school? You’re gonna be late.” Something about the man gives Akira a bad vibe and she isn’t sure why. By appearance alone he seems harmless, but she recalls her parents warning her about strangers when she was younger. A part of her wants to yell to alert someone of the man, but her decision to do so is stopped as the girl beside her speaks up.

“Um…Sure, thank you.”

Akira blinks as the blond girl advances forward to the car before she quickly grabs her wrist startling her, “What..What are you doing?”

“Um…Isn’t he…”

“Do you need a lift too?”

Immediately Akira lets go of the other girl’s wrist as the man directs the question to her and tenses up as he gives her a smile. “Ah…You’re a student at Shujin too. No worries, I’m the volleyball coach over there.”

“I um…I see,” Akira takes a few steps back as the blond girl walks forward again and opens the car door, “I…No thank you.”

“You sure?” the man raises an eyebrow as the blond girl puts her seat belt on, “It’s raining pretty badly. I wouldn’t feel right if I left you behind sweetie.”

Sweetie?!

She was fine with her stepfather calling her his usual nickname to her and even her mother often called her 'sweetheart' or 'dear.' This man though...

Akira only shook her head before and bowed a bit, “I’m okay…I can wait it out.” The way he addressed her was enough to set the alarm in her head. Even if he said he was a teacher of the school didn’t mean she felt comfortable with him in his car. She glanced at the blond girl in the passenger seat who was staring at her and for a moment she almost left the protection of the canopy until a boy’s voice called out.

“Hey! Sorry I made you wait!”

She turned her head to see a blond boy running towards her, though he seemed to be limping a bit in his steps as he came closer. Unlike the girl Akira could faintly see his hair was much brighter which hinted that he had dyed it. She stared at him in surprise as he gave her a smile, “You okay?”

Akira only nodded before looking to see the windows of the car roll up as the girl looked towards her with a confused look. The boy dropped his smile as soon as the car began to move before glaring, “Screw that pervy teacher.”

“Pervy…Teacher?” Akira tilted her head to the side in confusion as the boy looked at her before speaking, “Yeah. That guy in the car was Kamoshida…Looks like you didn’t want to go into his car. Not that I can blame ya.”

“…Who’s Kamoshida?”

The boy raised an eyebrow at her before pointing to the direction the car had taken off, “That was Kamoshida. In the car?” Akira frowns before the boy drops his hand and scowls, “He does whatever the hell he wants. Who does he think he is…Some king of a castle? Prick…Don’t you agree?”

“…Um..Which castle?”

Again the blond boy stared at her and she can feel her face feeling hot as she is stared at, “I’m sorry…I really don’t understand what you’re going on about.” The boy scratches his head before kicking at the ground, “Are you for real…You’re from Shujin aren’t you? You’re wearing the uniform.”

Akira lightly tugs at the sleeve of her blazer as the boy continues on, “Then again…I uh, I don’t think I’ve seen you around before.”

“I’m a transfer student,” she replies before tugging at her braid again, “I’ve only just started. I’m a second year.”

“Oh cool, we’re in the same grade,” the boy smiles before frowning, “But seriously…Stay away from Kamoshida. You were pretty smart trying to keep away from getting a car ride with him.” Akira nods before looking at the sky as the blond boy does the same before huffing, “The rain’s letting up a little bit so it ain’t too bad now. We should hurry up and get to the school, or we’ll be late.”

“That is not something I want,” Akira spoke as she adjusts her bag and comes a bit closer to the boy, “Um…Is it okay if I follow you?”

“Huh? Uh sure no big deal,” the boy shrugs before shouldering his bag and walking only to stop to press his hand against his forehead, “The hell…?” Akira opens her mouth to ask if he’s okay only to halt and cringe as she stumbles a little over her two feet. The sidewalk sways a bit and she struggles to fight against the heaviness in her head to right herself up. The light-headiness passes eventually and she looks over to the boy as he angrily huffs,  Ugh, freakin’ heck man,” the boy scoffs before walking again, “The weather must be messing with us or something. My head hurts…I wanna go home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up will be entering into the castle and Akira's awakening!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Into the Castle of Lust...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I LIVEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Sorry for the very, very late update! Please enjoy this long awaited-if not short-chapter!
> 
> TIME FOR A DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING PERTAINING TO THE PERSONA SERIES!!
> 
> Warning! Sexual implications up ahead in this chapter!

“The school’s pretty close,” the boy told Akira as they walked through the alley and peered at his cell phone, “And we’re actually gonna make it on time. Sheesh…why’d it have to rain though.”

“I didn’t know it was going to be raining so hard either,” Akira agreed as she carefully hopped over a puddle as she tried to keep up with the boy, “At least it finally started to let up. I forgot my umbrella at home…”

Up close she could finally study his appearance.

His hair was a much brighter shade of blonde compared to the girl from earlier. Her hair seemed a bit of a shade paler than his and Akira wondered if he had it dyed. It seemed possible by the looks of it...

Even his uniform...

She never really noticed earlier, but now she realized at how it was...Unique? It certainly didn't look standard or uniformed.

His blazer was open revealing a bright graphic t-shirt and his pants were rolled up slightly to reveal his ankles. The suspenders too were left off his shoulders and dangled down at his sides.

Everything about this boy was wild. Even a tad bit of delinquent maybe?

“Pretty messed up and on your first day too right?” he shrugged before adjusting his hold on his bag. His voice broke Akira out of her trance and she hurried behind him. He was pretty fast...

He wasn't much taller than her, but his pace was quick. She hopped over another puddle as the boy pointed ahead, “We’re just in front of the school and we’ll finally be out of this rain.”

“Oh good,” Akira smiled only to blink as she heard something behind her and stopped to turn around. The boy continued to walk ahead of her as she stared down the alleyway with a frown as she felt something was wrong. She had sworn she had heard some sort of sound much like the wind, but there was no breeze…

“...What the hey?!”

Akira blinked in surprise at the boy’s yell before running towards the end of the alleyway only to stop as she stared at the building before them.

“The heck…We didn’t,” the boy glanced down the alley before looking at the building again, “We didn’t come the wrong way though. This should be right.”

The large castle loomed over them and the darkened purple sky made her blink a few times until she pinched herself hard. “Ow!” She was still staring at it….She stared to the signs by the drawbridge and let out a confused sound as she read the sign. The words clearly stated the castle before them was Shujin Academy, but she recalled that the school wasn’t a castle last time she came by.

“What’s goin’ on here?” the boy beside her scratched at his head furiously before glancing to her, “I guess…I guess we’ll just have to go in and ask.”

“There’s no choice in the matter is there?” Akira replied as she followed him up the bridge while glancing around, “But…We’re both seeing this right?” The boy grunted in agreement as they continued to walk deeper towards the castle.

Her fingers tightened a bit on the strap of her bag as they stepped into the castle and glanced about the foyer with a frown on her face. Squinting she swore for a moment she saw a haze of how the school entrance way was supposed to look like. Yet the multiple chandeliers and grand staircase told her otherwise.

The boy beside her scratched his head before glancing to her, “Okay…This is weird. Where’s the school?”

“We didn’t make a wrong turn did we?” she asked as she nervously tugged at the end of her right braid and twisted the lock around her fingers. He let out a low groan before taking out his phone, “Yeah I know right? This should be the school,” he agreed as he pressed his finger against the phone’s screen, “The heck…Out of service? Where’d we end up then huh? The sign outside was for the school…You saw it too right?!”

“W-Well yes,” Akira replied and began to press her glasses closer to her eyes, “There’s no other way I couldn’t have. We both walked in the same direction didn’t we?”

“Ya got a point,” her companion agreed before shoving his phone back into his pocket, “Sheesh…So if we’re not at the school, where are we though. It makes no sense. I’m sure we were walking the right way.” She could only shrug as she and the boy continued to glance around the area. The sound of metal rattling made them tense and they turned towards someone in a suit of armor approaching them.

Akira stepped back, her fingers tighter on her bag strap as the boy tilted his head to the stranger and took a step forward. “W-Wait shouldn’t we-“

“Geez you freaked me out!” the boy exclaimed as he went closer to the armored person, “Uh…Anyway, are you a student like us or something? Your costume is pretty impressive too…Is that seriously real armor?”

 _“Should he really be so close to that person?”_ Akira wondered as she watched him examine the other in front of them. From the looks of it, it seems that the person in front of them is dressed as if he is a castle guard. She can only feel her body tensing the longer she stares at them and she can’t relax at all since they had entered the castle. Something in the air felt heavy and she forced herself to take one step forward as the boy continued to speak, “C’mon man. Don’t just stand there,” he sighed, “Say something will ya?”

Akira can only tense as she hears more rattling of metal and looks around them to see more armored guards approaching them. The boy notices as well and immediately steps away from the person he was speaking to before he is standing right beside her. “What’s…What’s goin’ on?”

Swallowing the lump in her throat she glances behind her and immediately grabs hold of the boy’s sleeve as she notices a sword pointed in her direction. The blond quickly puts an arm up in front of her and makes them step away, “This shit’s real…Goddamnit,” he mutters as he gulps loudly, “C-Calm down! Time out right now man!”

Akira only grips the fabric of his sleeve tighter as the guards around them raise their swords at his yells, “They’re not going to listen to us,” she whispers to him, “We need to get out of here.

“Agreed,” the boy replies,“We gotta run then!” the boy tells her and quickly charges forward, his fingers grasping the edge of her blazer’s sleeve to drag her along with him. Akira stumbles for a moment before running properly with his own pace only to hit his back as the exit blocked by two more guards.

“Shit. What’s with these guys!?”

Akira shares his frustration and fear as she looks around them to see they are surrounded. “Let us through now!” She gasps as a shield hits the boy on the side and watches as he falls to the ground, “Ow! You’re gonna break my bones damnit!” he yells as he looks up at her, “Shit, run! Behind you!”

Akira turns and feels her whole body turn cold as two guards advance to her before trying to break off into a run. Two hands grab her upper arms and she yelps as she is held in place while the boy struggles to get up, “Shit. Let her go!” The blond boy gets up on his feet for a moment before Akira sees a shield swing towards him from behind.

“Look out!”

Her warning comes too late and she can only hear him groan in pain as he fell face first into the carpeted floor. Akira glances at the guards and attempts to wiggle free of the two who hold her, “Let me go!” She manages to get one arm free only to have it captured in the guard’s grasp again and growls, “Let me go right now!”

“Silence her.”

Akira barely has time to duck as something comes from the right and hits her hard right against her temple. She immediately staggers and she can slowly see her world turn black as her body is slowly dragged away from the boy.

“Take them away.”

* * *

  _“Hey leave her alone!”_

_Her legs feel heavy, yet she feels light as a feather as she comes forward between the man and the woman._

_She found it quite odd that she felt cold despite the night air feeling warmer with the humidity as she looked between the two adults. The woman was staring at her with wide eyes as tears slowly fell down her cheeks. The man on the other hand looked at her with narrowed bloodshot eyes along with his lips pulled back to reveal his teeth._

_Like a snarling dog…_

_Akira gripped the strap of her bag tighter as she placed a hand in front of the woman as the man came forward, “Sir…Back up…Now.”_

_“You’re not telling me what to do you fucking brat!”_

_She can’t help, but cringe at how slurred his words are and the scent of alcohol hits her nose making her look away. The woman’s fingers are gripping at her sleeves as her head frantically goes back and forth between her and the man._

_“I…”_

_“It’s okay,” Akira steals a quick glance over her shoulder at the woman and smiles only to grit her teeth as she feels a large hand grabs at her arm. He’s much closer and his face is right up to hers that she immediately looks away. The smell of alcohol is quite heavy as she feels his hot breath on her face._

_“Heh…You know up close you’re not so bad looking for a kid.”_

_Her stomach clinches and she pulls her arm back from his grasp, “Ew gross! Get off me you pig!”_

_Akira feels her shoulders go up as the man stares at her, his mouth open as his eyes are wide behind his shades. Yet the surprise is gone in an instant as he speaks again, “You fucking bitch!”_

* * *

When she comes to she’s awaken by the sounds of girls moaning and giggling around her, making her jerk up immediately. She can feel something grasping her ankle which is enough to finally get her off the floor. A girl is grabbing onto her leg and she yells before stepping away from the other’s reach. Instantly the other girl releases her as she moves before going back to lying again on the floor.

Akira lets out a shaky sigh before finally looking around in the room she is in.

The room smells heavy of roses that make her cough and the colors of red and pink are too bright on her eyes. Yet the biggest thing that makes her skin crawl were the amount of girls in gym shorts all around her. Many were lying all around the room on their stomach much like the girl that had grabbed her earlier, but she can make out a few girls sitting up shirtless with only an arm covering their breasts from view.

All of them don’t seem to be paying her much attention and continue to moan and giggle as she slowly backs away from the sight.

Akira slowly presses her fingers against her forehead and lightly slaps her cheeks only to wince at the pain as she takes note that she is still in the room.

“Not a dream…Damnit,” she whispers as she glances around before spotting the door on the other side of the room, “I…I need to get out of here.” Akira’s legs shake a bit as she makes the first few steps forward and covers her ears as the girls’ noises seem to be louder as she moves through them.

Cooing and moaning…God this was sickening…

“Kamoshida-sensei.”

“Ah, more, more please!”

“Tell me how great I am!”

Kamoshida…?

Wasn’t that the name of the teacher the boy was talking about earlier, the one who had the girl go into his car?

She shudders as she remembers the feeling of that suited man on the train running his fingers along her legs.

God…..What if….

The breath she held came out as a gasp as she stumbled into the hallway, slamming the door closed behind her as she nearly fell to her knees. The girl swallows the slight feeling of nausea as she tries to get herself together.

She had just woken up and left a room filled with scantily clad girls…

Her head hurts so badly, but she can’t stay long to rest. Akira remembers the boy that came with her and frowns upon realizing that he wasn’t with her in that room. Slowly she straightens up before advancing down the long hallway, keeping her hands clenching the front of her shirt as she rushes past the rows of armor.

A long hallway with a bright red carpet greets her at the end and she presses herself up against the wall as she hears the clanging of armor heading in her direction.

Her back slowly slides down until she can pull her knees close to her chest and she closes her eyes as the footsteps come closer. Akira can feel her breathing quickening into short quiet gasps and she prays that those armored guards from earlier don’t go down the corridor she’s currently in.

The footsteps are much closer and she squeezes her eyes shut as her breathing stops entirely. Her entire body hurts being in such a position, but she fears of what would happen if they find her. Akira can only focus on trying to keep herself small and hidden in the shadows, her life depended on it.

She can sense them walk right by her…Two? Were there two guards?

She doesn't want to risk the urge to peek and forces herself to remain hidden. Yet she manages to focus on their conversation and listens to them carefully as they go by.

“Where’s the other intruder?”

“In the dungeons of course…Lord Kamoshida is sure to give him the proper sentence for trespassing.”

“Agreed.”

Other intruder?

Her mind goes back to the blonde boy who was with her and her eyes snap open, he was trapped somewhere else.

She…

_“I…I have to find him.”_

Once the footsteps fade Akira slowly emerges out from her hiding spot, her legs aching despite it being such a short time being curled up against the wall. A part of her wants to stay hidden and lay down. Her head hurts and her stomach is still churning from the sight of those half naked girls.

Yet she moves forward.

The hallway is long and she runs, the carpet thankfully muffling her steps until she reaches a door. Pushing it forward and peering through a crack she can see the foyer….Exactly where she and the boy got caught. Akira closes the door and presses a hand against her heart, she can feel it thumping frantically against her rib cage.

She has to find him, and to do that she has to venture further. The thought makes her knees buckle and she presses her back against the door to keep standing.

At the corner of her eye she catches something.

It’s hidden behind a vase of roses, but its shine is impossible to miss.

Reaching forward her fingers grasp something and her fingers tighten around the handle as she pulls it out from its hiding spot.

A dagger made of dark metal greets her as she stares at it.

It’s heavy and the blade seems sharp enough to look threatening. Without any other thoughts Akira keeps her hold firm on the dagger before slipping out the door. The weight of a weapon in her hand makes her uneasy, but at the same time she feels safer.

She can defend herself now.

Her resolve is set in finding the boy, and getting them both out.

That is enough for her to take the first steps forward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did state before that Akira's awakening would be coming up, and it will next chapter! Again I am very sorry for the long wait and I thank you all for your continued support!
> 
> Thank you!
> 
> And until next time~! Take care!

**Author's Note:**

> Welp, jumping on the female Akira train, whoo whoo! I will be posting up chapters for this story on fanfiction.net under the same name, XrosaryX!
> 
> Thank you for reading!


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